The Dream
by MoodyCrab3
Summary: ichigo is dreaming about orihime again. will it ever stop?


**disclaimer: i don't own bleach. or orihime or ichigo. but i do own little hitomi and the story. **

**my second story. my first sucked. not a single review. but i hope this one will be better. hope you guys like it. dont forget to review!!**

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The dream:

Ichigo was half asleep. He lay on his bed, spread eagle, without a care in the world, drifting into a dreamless slumber.

"Ichigo"

He heard a soft melodious voice whisper into his ear. He didn't want to respond. His mind was too busy trying to shut the world out of his head.

"Ichigo"

The voice echoed inside of his head. It kept nudging him to wake up. "Not now" he mumbled mostly to himself, in response to the voice and brought a hand to his face, shielding his visage from her view and continued to catch up on his sleep.

He felt fingers trace along the edge of his forehead, run through his hair, and tug them tenderly. He heard a low chuckle. He felt warm air as someone breathed against his neck.

"I love you Ichigo"

She whispered one again into his ears, like so many times before. She brought her lips close to his and kissed him gently. He smiled in his sleep.

"Ichigo hap ……….. Ring"

She was interrupted by a loud ring. Ichigo waited for her to complete her phrase.

She continued," Hap……….. Ringgggggggggg"

Ichigo woke up startled. The loud sound had exploded in his ears. He instantly reached for the object and hit it several times to shut it off. He blinked around, his mind frantically trying to place himself. He was still at home and he had been dreaming about her again.

He brought his hands to his forehead and signed. When was he going to get over her? When was the dream going to stop?

`He was still tired and his body was aching. He wanted to get back to his bed, fall flat on his face and get his beauty sleep. But he wouldn't dare. Not if it meant seeing her again. It was not the dream that was painful to bear, but the reality that he later woke up to, it stressed on her absence, and he ached inside.

He stood up and dragged his feet, finally reaching the refrigerator he opened its door and grabbed a bottle of cold water. He pressed it against his face and let it cool his nerves. He opened the cap and gulped down some ice cold water before heading for the couch. He slouched down and reached for the remote and started to flip through channels randomly. But nothing interested him. He was still tired. He let his eyes shut.

"Ichigo"

Her voice again. He forced his eyes open. "Not again," he thought, his frown growing deeper. He looked around, trying to find something to keep him occupied. The room was dirty. The laundry was not done. The dishes needed to be washed. And he still had piles of paper work lying on his desk waiting to be finished. He signed. The past six months had not been easy without her.

He let his thoughts wander and recalled the day he had met her.

It was on a rainy day in a tea shop. She worked there as a waitress.

_He walked in, his coat drenched wet. He took it off and sat down at a corner where he would be bothered less by people's chit chats. Ichigo was quiet by nature and preferred solitude to company. He held out the newspaper he had brought earlier that morning and skimmed through the headlines, ignoring everything around him. _

"_Excuse me, what can in get you?"_

_A melodious voice asked. Ichigo looked up to find a woman starring down at him, her face graced with a beautiful smile. Ichigo's heart skipped a beat. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. She was as bright as the sunshine and Ichigo was melting under her vivid gaze. His words abandoned him and he simply starred at her, his mind blank. When he didn't respond, her smile slowly melted into a look of concern. _

"_Sir?" _

_She began to worry when he did not react and simply starred. She wondered if she had something stuck on her teeth. When she repeated herself, Ichigo snapped out of it._

"_I ll have coffee please,"_

_He ordered, still caught in her charm. _

_The woman smiled again, _

"_Right away," she replied._

_Ichigo watched her walk gracefully to another table. She began to take the order of a couple seated two tables away from him. He told himself that it was not polite to stare and turned his attention to the newspaper. But her smile continued to haunt him. _

That had been their first encounter. Ichigo knew at first sight that given the chance to know her better, he would fall head over heels in love with her. And he had been right. She had simply breezed her way into his life, tugging at his heartstring gently and playfully. That day will stay fresh in his mind forever and so will she.

Thought of her were recurring again. He had promised himself that he would forget and move on. But he yielded to temptation and let his mind wander wild. As thoughts of her crossed him, he picked up a video cassette underneath the mess on the coffee day, inserted it in the VCR and clicked on the play button.

_A beautiful woman in white smiled into the camera. From behind her a handsome man in a black tuxedo grabbed her arm and pulled her closer to him. Her initial surprise turned into amusement as she laid her hands on his broad angular shoulders and took his hand in hers. His other arm, wrapped itself around her waist. They started dancing slowly, each lost in the others eye. Slowly she leaned into his chest hugging his body. He rested his chin on her head and caressed her long dark hair, trying to contain the ache in his heart. She meant so much to him that in moment such as these his heart swelled with love and threatened to burst forth. He smiled and whispered into her ears, _

"_I love you."_

_She raised her head and repeated his words, and in her eyes he could see she felt the same way he did. _

Ichigo once again found himself reminiscing as memories of their marriage and life together hovered in his head. Their wedding had been a memorable day. She was beautifully clothed in white. She vaguely reminded him of an angel clad in moonlight. They had taken theirs vows, promised to stay by each others side in sickness and in health, till death does them apart. They had stayed true to their vows. They had stayed together till death did them apart…..

He pushed aside the memory and continued to watch the video. It had been the happiest moment of his life. Ichigo remembered the last day he spent with her. The day she had bid good bye and left him. The events of that day were etched in his mind, haunting him. And even now, six months later, it made him tremble. He tried not to think, but the incident rushed into his mind causing him to shudder in agony.

_Orihime was still fast asleep. Ichigo was fully dressed and ready to go. _

" _Orihime" he called her trying to wake her up. She wouldn't budge. _

"_Orihime," he repeated, his hand reaching out for her and shaking her in her sleep. She mumbled some incoherent words and continued to sleep. He watched his wife. She was as beautiful as ever. He let his hands caress her cheeks and bent down to kiss her on her lips._

"_Wake up, sleeping beauty"_

_He whispered into her ears._

_She smiled and opened her eyes. _

_Orihime and Ichigo got into the car. They were late. Ichigo put on his seat belts and asked Orihime to do the same. She ignored him and continued to read the magazine she was holding in her hand. Ichigo pressed on the accelerator with his foot and drove fast._

_The traffic was slowing them down. _

"_Damn," Ichigo cursed under his breath. He took a turn and entered the highway. It would be much faster this way. He turned to look at Orihime, taking his eyes off the road. _

"_Orihime, call the school and tell them we ll be late" _

_He told her. Orihime obliged. She took her hand bag and rummaged for her mobile, but unfortunately couldn't find it. Ichigo turned his attention back to the road but was distracted when Orihime told him her mobile was missing. He turned to look at her again, asking her to keep looking. And because his attention was diverted from the road, he missed the truck that was approaching towards them. _

_It was a head on collision. The road was too narrow and by the time Ichigo noticed the truck they were already smashing into the front of the truck. The front glass shattered and Ichigo hit his head against the steering wheel. Orihime was not wearing the seat belt. And for her mistake she paid dearly. She was thrown out the car. She crashed against the truck rolled down hit the ground with a mild' thud'. . _

_Ichigo regained consciousness and walked out to find his wife, pale and motionless. She seemed unconscious. There were no visible signs of a wound. _

"_Thank god, she's not hurt", he told himself._

_He limped his way to her. _

_He bent down and moved closer to her body, gently touched her, and expected her to moan or groan in pain. She didn't respond. She felt cold. He froze in fear. He told himself she was not dead, just unconscious. He shook her lightly. "Orihime,"_

_He whispered, gently into her ears, hoping she would stir at the sound of her name. _

_When she didn't respond, he yelled. He grabbed her limp body and shook her vigorously, calling out her name repeatedly, checking for any sign of life. He did not find any. He held her head in his arms. He felt something sticky in his fingers. He removed his hand to see what it was. A chill ran down his spine when he saw blood smeared across his hand. When reality began to sink in; he hugged her cold body taking her in his arms. He buried his head in her neck and cried. Desperately hoping she would still be alive._

_But she was gone. _

_Death…_

_Ichigo never truly appreciated death till that moment._

_The power he held over us mere mortals. You can never evade death; he always manages to slither his way into your life. death was omnipresent. Death didn't merely mean the parting of the soul from its lodging. Death could mean the loss of a relationship, the loss of a time in your life, like your past, the loss of a part of your self, like your innocence and so much more. Death was polymorphic. It was never possible to predict when he would strike. But when he does you can be sure, he steals from you. But he is not a thief, for he replaces what he has stolen with something else. He replaces them with misery, pain, despair, and self-loathing. _

_And on that fatal day, death had greeted them both. Orihime had lost her soul to death. Ichigo had lost his love, his happiness and a better part of his life. More that her, it was he who had been plundered. More than her it was he who had lost and suffered. _

Ichigo fought back tears that were threatening to fall. He wiped them off with the sleeve of his shirt. He usually did not cry. He looked upon crying as a sign of weakness. But when he thought of her he let them fall. He could not bring her back; he could not protect her like he should have. The only thing he _could do _was cry. Thinking back, Ichigo was still not sure if he had been blessed or cursed. He was definitely cursed, to lose the love of his life. Orihime was everything he was not. She was kind, social while he was introverted. She always smiled while he always wore his signature frown. She was beautiful in mind, body and soul. He had loved her the moment he laid eyes on her. They had exchanged wedding vows and planned to spend the rest of their life together. She had spent her life with him. But he was cursed to carry on without her. She had abandoned him and he would suffer without her. But in a way he was also blessed because he had survived, and found love once again.

Lost in thoughts, Ichigo fell asleep on the couch. And in his sleep he dreamt of her. He knew it was a dream. But this time he found comfort in those dreams. He found comfort in the fact she existed in those dreams. He was lying on her lap. Her fingers ploughed through his hair, a smile stretched across her face. In his dreams, they would always be together, and with her by his side he would be complete. With her by his side he ceased to be empty.

"Ichigo"

She began. He opened his eyes and looked into her brown orbs.

"What is it?"

He asked. Her smile widened, her eyes gleaming with mischief. As he watched her, something inside of him stirred. The stir soon became an ache. He knew it was the sense of loss, clenching his heart. He would die to bring her back. But cry as he may, suffer as he may, plead as he may, she will never be back. She was now nothing more than dust. She only existed in his dreams, a blurry image in his broken mind.

"Close your eyes; I have a gift for you"

Ichigo frowned.

"Gift?"

He asked, curiously. She shook her head and refused to tell him. She insisted he close his eyes. He complied.

He felt soft skin touch his cheeks. It delicately rubbed again his warm skin and it made him tingle. She had kissed him. His chest hurt. Never again would he feel her lips against his. Never would he hold her in his arms. Though his love for her was eternal, "they" had died. She had died. And only he remained.

"Ha……." She began.

But she was cut off once again when a loud voice yelled into his ears, startling him. He jerked his eyes open and straightened on the couch into a sitting position. He found a pair of eyes looking into his with intent_. _

"Dad"

His daughter yelled again. Hitomi had been just four years old when Orihime passed away. She was the split image of her mother. She meant the world to Ichigo. Orihime's death was the opening of the Pandora's Box, chaos had ensued soon but Hitomi had been hope. She was the glue that held his world together. Without her he would fall apart. She was his only consolation in an Orihime-less world.

He blinked before gathering himself.

"What is it, Hitomi?"

He asked, a little displeased at being awakened. He had wanted to find out what the gift was for.

"Dad, close your eyes"

His daughter demanded. Ichigo frowned. He was experiencing dejavu. He ran his fingers through his hair, eyeing his daughter suspiciously. What was she up to now? Hitomi was quiet mischievous by nature, a trait she shared with her mother.

"Dad, close your eyes. I have something for you"

She repeated herself. She was getting impatient. She took her fathers hand and shook it forcefully to ensure that he was listening. In her appearance she resembled her mother. She was a chip off the old block down to the very last straw. But her nature was fiercer like her father's.

"Sure" Ichigo said, confused.

He closed his eyes and waited patiently. His daughter, being small, stood on her toes to try and reach him when she couldn't; she climbed on the couch and bend her neck to kiss her fathers cheeks.

"Happy birthday"

She yelled into his ears and giggled quiet pleased with herself. Ichigo had completely forgotten. The dream suddenly made sense to him. This is what _she _too had been trying to say. He was grateful and touched that his daughter remembered his birthday. He turned back to watch his daughter stop giggling and glare at him for lack of a proper response.

He hugged her tightly and kissed her warmly. Hitomi smiled and threw her hands around her father's neck, hugging him back. They broke apart.

"Come on dad, let's go get a cake. I want a chocolate cake with red bean pasta."

She grabbed a hold of his hands and pulled him towards the nearest exit.

Ichigo had to smile.

They say that sometimes the future gives you back what you have lost in the past, not quiet the same thing but something in its essence. He was finally beginning to understand its meaning as he looked into the brown orbs of his daughter's eyes.

Yes, he had been blessed, to find love once again in the form of his daughter. And for that he would forever be grateful that his life was spared.

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**NOTE:**

**IF IT SUCKS! TELL ME!( but please don't be harsh)**

**REVIEWS ARE WELCOME.**


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